Stickiness (DAU/MAU)

Why Stickiness Matters

Sticky products have better retention and higher lifetime value. Users who engage daily build habits and are less likely to churn. High stickiness also creates more opportunities for monetization and word-of-mouth growth.

Stickiness expectations vary by product type. Social media aims for 50%+. A monthly reporting tool might naturally have 10% and still be healthy.

Improving Stickiness

Build daily use cases into your product. Send timely notifications without being spammy. Create streaks or daily rewards. Make the product faster and easier to use. Understand what brings power users back and amplify those features.

How to Calculate Stickiness Step by Step

Step 1: Calculate average DAU. Sum daily unique active users for 30 days, divide by 30. "Active" = meaningful action, not just login.

• Average DAU: 2,800

Step 2: Calculate MAU. Unique users active at least once in the same 30-day window.

• MAU: 9,500

Step 3: Divide. Stickiness = 2,800 ÷ 9,500 = 29.5%. The average user comes back ~9 days per month.

Step 4: Segment by user type. Power users might be 60% while casual users are 5%. This distribution tells you whether to make the product stickier for everyone or convert casual users to power users.

Step 5: Compare cohorts over time. Newer cohorts with lower stickiness may signal worsening onboarding or less-qualified acquisition.

Common mistakes founders make:

• Defining "active" too loosely (background syncs and auto-logins shouldn't count)
• Comparing across product categories (a weekly reporting tool vs a daily messaging app)
• Confusing high DAU with high engagement (notification-driven opens aren't genuine engagement)